The Pittsburgh Steelers' defense has seen its share of shakeups in the secondary this season, putting considerable strain on the depth in the defensive backfield. In the second half of their matchup with the Chicago Bears, that depth is tested once again as cornerback Joey Porter Jr. has left the contest with a hip injury.
Porter injured his hip while falling on an incomplete pass, according to the CBS broadcast, and was ruled as questionable to return. Porter also suffered a leg injury earlier in the game, but didn’t miss much game action as a result.
With Porter sidelined, the Steelers defense turns to veteran Darius Slay, who started opposite of Porter prior to missing last week’s game due to a concussion. Slay was activated for this game, but didn’t see the field much in the first half with James Pierre getting the start.
Pittsburgh Steelers reshuffle the secondary with Joey Porter Jr. out of the lineup
It’s a difficult day to lose a defensive back for Pittsburgh. Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has had some erratic passes that Pittsburgh wasn’t able to capitalize on, but otherwise, he’s been able to rack up several splash plays and a trio of touchdowns before the fourth quarter.
While Pierre has stepped his play up tremendously in recent weeks, Slay has been inconsistent, both in play and availability. Slay has missed time in nearly every game he’s played in this season with one minor injury or another. If Slay comes off the field, the Steelers would have to alter the entire secondary again by bringing Jalen Ramsey down from his free safety position.
Hopefully, that’s not the case. Regardless, however, it’s never an ideal situation for a defense to lose its top corner in the midst of a tight contest that could come down to the wire.
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In the meantime, Pittsburgh will lean on Slay and Pierre on the outside as Pittsburgh looks for more turnover opportunities to slow down an efficient Bears offense.
We’ll continue to monitor Porter’s status as more information becomes available.